Improvement in street pavement



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EDGAR M. rownnn, or NEW Yoan, N. Y., AssIeNoR 'roHENR-Y e." y MCGONEGAL,or 'SAME PLAGE.

Letters Patent No. 100,134, dated .February 22, 1870.

IMPROVEMENT IN STREET PAVEMENT.

The Schedule 'referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of thesame.

To all whom tt'may concern .tion of the saine, reference heilig had tothe drawingsthat accompany and form a part of these specifications.

Figure l, view in perspective of a section of my pavement laid.

Figure 2, a plan of the upper face ofthe blocks and ofthe dividingstrip.

Letter A represents the foundation upon which my structure rests, andthis may be of wood, a flooring, whose plank lay longitudinally tothestreet, or of any other suitable material or l'orln, even the roadway ofearth itself properly prepared.

Letter B, blocks of wood', with plane sides, meeting each other at rightangles, so placed that the line ot' the grain of the wood shall bevertical, measuring in depth six inches or so, in thickness about threeinches, and in the other direction as economy requires.

Letter C, Wooden strips, say common boards, in width slightly less thanthe height ofthe blocks B, and in thickness one inch or more7 even totwo inches.

These strips have uniformly distributed along their two opposite facesnumerous cone-shaped concave grooves in arrangement and form 'as fullyillustrated in the drawings, being blpad at the top and in depth abouthalf the thickness of the strip. (See tig.` 2.)

Letter E, the grooves in the face sides of the dividing strips C.

These grooves, it will be observed, are not placed opposite to eachother inthe two opposing sides, but so that there should be a planeungrooved surface upon the opposite side to eachv groove. (See thedrawings) The object of my invention is not only to provide a cheap anddurable pavement, but also to secure a better traveling surface,especially as alfording a desirable and firm footing for horses, thatthey may not slip, and also to provide for the expansion and contractionot' the blocks.

My invention consists in making use of dividing strips between alternaterows of the perpendicular blocks, which, standing on edge, rise nearlyor quite as high as the said blocks, and are provided with uumerousconcave cone -shaped grooves, as hereiubefore specied. f

When blocks of wood like these presented herewith are placed Ato form apavement, the blocks laying one close to another ou all itsperpendicular sides two very serious defects present themselves, viz:the rising up in places more orless occasioned by the expansion of thesaid blocks from moisture absorbed, and secondly the too greatuniformityorsmoothuess of the traveled I surface. f

Did I simply use a board without cutting away any l part there/onbetweenthe alternate rows of blocks, I

would remove this above 'latter-.mentioned imperfection, for the upperedge of said board used as dividgravel, and the slightly-yielding natureof the struc@ ture between alternate rows 'of the vertical blocks provessutticient for the expansion of the latter, and lmy pavement remains asfixed and iii-n1 as could bev desired.

These grooves E may be narrow and more numerons, or each wider and thenumber less, as economy in production and experience in use may suggest.In depth they should be about haltthe thickness of the b'oard or plankon which they are formed'.

I do not claim the vertical grooves in themselves, but only as appliedto the dividing strip O.

That I claim as of my invention, and desire-t0 se-` cure by LettersPatent, is

lhe dividing or vintervening strips 'C when'grooved substantially asspecified, and used in connection with theA blocksB, for the purposesset forth. v

In testimony whereof,I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing wit'-v nesses.. 4

EDGAR M. FOWLER.

' Witnesses: i 'Y JouN M. GAEFRY,

Trino. P. ANDERsoN. e

